To measure how history has played a part in institutional care we need to consider what evidence there is to be able to define how this fits into Goffman's account of total institution, and how this has influenced practices today. For this essay I intend to explore Goffman's account of total institution and based on researched evidence consider to what extent his account fits into Lennox castle. From conclusions drawn from this I also intend to explore what practices would help to minimise institutionalisation in today's care settings.
To discuss how Goffman's account of total institution fits into Lennox castle we firstly need to explore his definition. (Unit 8, pp. 126-27) and (Reader, Jones and Fowles 1984, p. 70) gives relevant insight into his account. Goffman considered that the concept of total institutions were a continuum of open and closed institutions, open institutions where residents were not totally isolated from society for long periods of time and different people entered through the gates, such as visitors, professionals, workmen etc.
Erving Goffman
Lennox bridge
Lennox Castle, Front HallHe considered that where residents were cut off from the wider society for appreciable periods of time and a large number of individuals lived and worked in an enclosed, formally administered environment they were towards the closed end of the spectrum therefore were the most likely to be considered a total institution, some examples of total institutions could be prisons, homes for the aged, convents and mental hospitals.
It could be argued that Goffman's work is invalid if we consider that no institution can ever be totally open, for example where access is restricted through an appointment system, or that no institution is ever totally closed for example, allowing entry to 'outsiders' for carrying out repairs etc. Validation of his work is considered in (Unit 8, p.